Imitation is the highest form of flattery and The Seven Ups is trying its hardest to flatter The French Connection. Made 2 years after that best picture Oscar winner the producer of that film is now the director of this one and the supporting actors are now the stars. Gritty New York City again serves as the backdrop for the exploits of a tough, play by his own rules cop played by Roy Scheider in place of Gene Hackman’s legendary Popeye Doyle. Tony Lo Bianco graduates from secondary criminal to lead bad guy this time with extortion taking the place of heroin smuggling. As any fan of The French Connection knew, it wasn’t going to be long until a hair raising intricately shot car chase burst across the screen pitting hero against his prey.
Phillip D’Antoni produced Bullitt and The French Connection so there was little doubt that The Seven Ups, his first directorial effort, would contain a car chase that would try to equal in greatness that which was set before it in those two previous efforts. In the age of computer graphics and green screen stunts, watching an action sequence like this can remind one of what made even run of the mill action films occasionally exhilarating. Real cars, real location shooting and real stuntman operating amid very tangible danger is a lost art which deprives audiences today of that sense of wonder that Hollywood was so expert at creating. Long takes of cars whipping around New York City locations, the camera racing along making the audience feel as if they are moving at 100 miles per hour, street kids and pedestrians narrowly being missed by swerving cars, the plotting of this scene is handled with highly skilled technique.
The 1970’s produced many streetwise cop action movies. The Seven Ups fits into the middle pack of these films. It has a solid lead in Roy Scheider plus great use of locations, which really takes advantage of New York City’s long gone street character, and one of the best directed car chases in film. It’s unfortunate that Hollywood has forgotten that entertainment can exist without computer graphics, a film that takes itself seriously and places its protagonist in tension filled scenarios can create more excitement than loud explosions, artificial looking backgrounds and headache producing fast cuts.
The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of 